Religion and Enlightenment in Eighteenth-Century England

`an important addition to our developing understanding of both the English Enlightenment and the Enlightenment more generally ... valuable discussion of the attempt to change the clerical requirement of subscription to the Thirty-nine Articles. In its mastery of the issues and of the literature this supersedes all previous accounts ... Young does chart new territory; his study of English clerical culture in its own terms is a work of fine scholarship and of original challenging insights. It is an important addition to the literature on the Enlightenment in England and a valuable contribution to the debate upon the nature of the Enlightenment.' Martin Fitzpatrick, Anglican and Episcopal History, Vol.LXX, No.2, June 2001 `the well-worn myth of intellectual progress has now been subjected to critical scrutiny, and B. W. Young's book is an intelligent and persuasive example of the new approach.' Alastair Hamilton, Heythrop Journal `Young demonstrates not only how central religion was to enlightenment discourse in England, but also how complex were the alignments of religious, intellectual and political committments. ... This book is a detailed, close reading of a number of neglected writers ... serves to restore a more whole picture of eighteenth-century intellectual life and to challenge the commonplace caricature of religion as a reactionary or decaying influence in the Age of Reason.' Bruce Hindmarsh, Journal of Ecclesisatical History, Vol 50, no 4 October 1999 `Young never allows the reader to settle into the groove of a normal book on the Enlightenment. Throughout the book, Young ties the reader down to interesting thinkers, letting them speak to us using their own categories and perspectives - not ours.' Rick Kennedy, Church History Vol. 68 No.2 `a closely-argued and intelligent book which seeks to redirect the study of eighteenth-century English intellectual history,' Scott Mandelbrote, Journal of Theological Studies `'...fully researched study...'' Contemporary Review